Koffee Klub gets lesson on workplace harassment

Friday

Feb 17, 2017 at 10:00 AM

Danielle Portteus Monroe News staff reporter DPortteusMNews

Small business owners should understand workplace harassment in order to provide a positive work environment.

Shelia Eason, a human resource consultant for The Employers’ Association, presented “A Valentine’s Day Look at Romance, Retaliation and Harassment in the Workplace” Tuesday at a Koffee Klub sponsored by the Monroe County Chamber of Commerce.

Her goal was for employers to understand the differences between workplace harassment and bullying and provide employers a framework for how to handle dating in the workplace.

Harassment is defined as conduct or actions based on race, religion, sex, age (40 and older), national origin, disability, genetic information, military membership or veteran status.

It is severe or pervasive enough to create a hostile, abusive or intimidating work environment for a reasonable person, Ms. Eason explained.

Additional protected classes vary by state and can include sexual orientation, marital status, political affiliation and trans-sexualism among others.

Ms. Eason defined sexual harassment as unwelcomed sexual advances, requests for sexual favors and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature that unreasonably affects an individual’s work performance or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment.

There are two types of sexual harassment — quid pro quo and hostile work environment.

“Quid pro quo is this for that,” Ms. Eason said. “You do something for me, I do something for you. Typically, any refusal to submit to the conduct may threaten a person’s terms of employment.”

A hostile work environment can be created by unwelcomed and demeaning sexually-related behavior that creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work space.

“If a co-worker rubs up against another co-worker or intentionally bumps into them, that could be considered a hostile work environment,” Ms. Eason explained.

She also said backrubs could rub a co-worker the wrong way.

“Back rubs are interesting,” Ms. Eason said. “Someone who is very friendly may come up behind and gently massage your back, but you do have to take it seriously. If someone finds it offensive, you have to address it.”

Bullying occurs in the workplace, Ms. Eason said. Bullying is the mistreatment of one or more employees with a malicious mix of humiliation, intimidation or sabotage of performance. It is more common than sexual harassment or verbal abuse.

Forms of workplace bullying can include social bantering or teasing, gossip, verbal abuse, stealing credit for work performed by someone else, assignment of unrealistic workloads, aggressive e-mails or notes and career sabotage among others.

Workplace bullying is inappropriate and unacceptable behavior, but it is not prohibited by any federal or state law.

Still, employers should be aware of such behaviors.

“You want to create an environment that is pleasant for employees,” Ms. Eason said.

Finally, Ms. Eason talked about relationships in the workplace. She said relationships between supervisors and subordinates can be tricky and disruptive to other employees.

She encouraged businesses to create a relationship policy if they do not have one.

If a workplace does allow employees to date, creating another document could be beneficial.

“Creating a relationship agreement between two consenting parties, which I call a love contract, is a good idea,” Ms. Eason said.